Red for Men 1991 Eau de Toilette

Red for Men (Eau de Toilette) by Giorgio Beverly Hills
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7.5 / 10 139 Ratings
A perfume by Giorgio Beverly Hills for men, released in 1991. The scent is spicy-woody. The production was apparently discontinued.
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Main accords

Spicy
Woody
Leathery
Floral
Green

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes Top Notes
CarawayCaraway ArtemisiaArtemisia BasilBasil BergamotBergamot
Heart Notes Heart Notes
Juniper berryJuniper berry CarnationCarnation GeraniumGeranium RoseRose JasmineJasmine ThymeThyme
Base Notes Base Notes
LeatherLeather OakmossOakmoss CedarCedar PatchouliPatchouli AmberAmber
Ratings
Scent
7.5139 Ratings
Longevity
7.8121 Ratings
Sillage
7.7119 Ratings
Bottle
6.1125 Ratings
Value for money
8.955 Ratings
Submitted by Lissy, last update on 02/06/2025.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to
Red for Men (After Shave Refresher) by Giorgio Beverly Hills
Red for Men After Shave Refresher
Patou pour Homme (1980) (Eau de Toilette) by Jean Patou
Patou pour Homme (1980) Eau de Toilette
Havana (Eau de Toilette) by Aramis
Havana Eau de Toilette
Rouge (Eau de Toilette) by Scorpio
Rouge Eau de Toilette
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Lagerfeld Classic / Lagerfeld (1978) (Eau de Toilette) by Karl Lagerfeld
Lagerfeld Classic Eau de Toilette

Reviews

9 in-depth fragrance descriptions
10
Bottle
7
Sillage
8
Longevity
10
Scent
Elysium

858 Reviews
Elysium
Elysium
Top Review 9  
A potpourri of zillion's elements
With Giorgio Beverly Hills Red for Men, my search for explosive scents of the last century continues. I was close to thirty when this perfume hit the market, but I didn't have much money, and I hadn't started collecting perfumes yet despite my innate passion. I remember that my first Giorgio Beverly Hills perfume was Wings for Men, of which I jealously keep the bottle and some precious drops of it. So, when I came across Giorgio di Beverly Hills Red for Men on an online site the other day, I thought the bottle was beautiful but, oh lord! You can't imagine my surprise when I smelled it. It was a flashback in time. Back to the 1980s! Big padded shoulders, great electronic disco music, the rivalry between the Spands and the Duran, excellent T.V. series like Dallas and Dynasty, and above all, great perfumes! Red was a truly wonderful surprise. Not loud, not pushy, not smelly. But quite a delightful, classy leather fragrance that arrests my senses and delights me and everyone who comes close enough to smell! Yes, I can assure it is quite polished and sumptuous—old school in a way but not harsh or dated to me. There are similarities to scents like Givenchy's Xeryus, Ralf Loren's Polo, Puig's Quorum, and Guy Laroche's Drakkar Noir, with its soapy clean top notes: all bold, complex, mossy, exuding a cheeky mix of all kinds of exotic and floral spices, warm amber, and musky base.

It is a duplicitous perfume, or even more; for some people, it looks like chypre, or fougère, or leathery, or woody, or spicy, or whatever you want. Well, call it whatever you like, but the gist doesn't change: Red is an ancient fairy tale, one that is no longer heard today. Anyhow, this perfume defies labels. This fragrance seems to polarize its audience. I am a little astonished by the creamy notes that initially are difficult to discern. But then I realized that this complexity is probably the result of their being very well mixed.

On me it opens with an explosion of aromatic accords, there is herbaceous artemisia, with green basil, a bite of citrus. The bergamot is brilliant and a lot, really a lot of cumin, which somehow transmits the smell of the sequoia bark in a humid, temperate rainforest in northern California. I've never been to California, but I like this association with my image of multicoloured forests in the fall. Cumin ensures a sweat-like smell that implies manhood. Sharp mugwort and bergamot are sweetened with sweet basil, and citrus tones as the whole quickly switch to more flowers. The initial stage is green, leaning towards soapy and aromatic, my mind remembers another cologne I should know well, which I have smelled several times and maybe even used, but I can't remember it right now.

A floral and spicy bouquet reveals the heart of the fragrance, the retro peppery carnation, luxurious and dewy jasmine, geranium leaves, juniper berries, keep it still manly against the petals of a fragrant rose and again aromatic thyme. This combination is soft and enveloping but soon meets the rising notes of the dry base.

And it is precisely in the dry down that we encounter a smooth and shiny leather akin to polo boots that warm up in the sun in the old fields near the sea. Cedarwood, dirty patchouli, oakmoss and sweet amber further warm the skin, a mix of the late afternoon feeling in the wooded hills around the old polo fields. Again, I like to think of that wonderful smell you get on hot afternoons in Southern California when the heat carries the scent of the semi-tropical plants growing there, as well as heat in countries like Italy and Greece brings with it the aroma of fig trees. From there, we get a fat accord of oakmoss and patchouli, a touch of leather, and the rich amber, to let you know this is still a chypre for men.

It wears so well and projects perfectly. The sillage is noticeable and collects some comments, always positive. It's a great fragrance, and it's better than most of the recent faint releases that last less than a blink of an eye. A great value! I suggest taking the opportunity once in a while and trying something you never imagined you wanted. You may find that Red somehow seems a bit of a rarity in this world of clones that all revolve around the ambroxan. I see this has an old school vibe, but still cool enough to be worn today. It can turn cloying if over-applied or used in the summer, so limit this floral sweet to cooler nights and days, autumn and winter are perfect. Red is now back in manufacture and costs less than a big tasty menu at a McDonald's. Red conveys a softness that few other '90s male orientals have ever dared, moving into a higher atmosphere of mature masculinity.

This review bases upon a 100 ml (3.4 fl. oz.) I own since November 2020.

-Elysium
0 Comments
10
Pricing
9
Bottle
10
Sillage
10
Longevity
10
Scent
11Mic22hael

9 Reviews
11Mic22hael
11Mic22hael
Very helpful Review 9  
A Legendary Masterpiece.
A true masterpiece. One of my most complimented frags of all time. Amazing for this price. "What cologne are you wearing"? "I really like that cologne you're wearing". I get compliments almost every time I wear it. Fragrances that cost $80 to $120? Not a peep from anybody. THIS? Costing around $15? Attention galore. Not that I care about getting compliments, I wear what I like regardless. But this little gem never ceases to amaze me. {{UPDATE, February 11, 2023}}: I just received another bottle of Red For Men with a production date of 08/2022. It was made in Spain, my old bottle was made in the USA and was made in 2017. Has this really been discontinued??? Or was production only moved to Spain? By the way, the one made in Spain is 10 times more awesome than the USA version. The older USA made bottle was great, but this Spanish made one is absolutely amazing!!! Much better and higher quality ingredients, better blended and more natural smelling!!! The leather and caraway notes are much deeper and louder. Dry-down is sublime. WOW.
0 Comments
10
Pricing
7
Bottle
8
Sillage
6
Longevity
8
Scent
Jitterbugboy

8 Reviews
Jitterbugboy
Jitterbugboy
Very helpful Review 6  
Still solid
I've only gotten into fragrances deeper in the last year or two. Although I've always had something around like a rudimentary Axe spray in my 20s or some department store aftershaves for fragrance. But I've had a bottle of this in various editions since 1993 (before the Axe). When I was in college, I worked in an office. The boss used to wear this, and it made the secretaries swoon. I overheard them talking about making excuses to go to a room where he hung up his blazer so they could get a nose-full without letting him know. So, of course, I had to get it myself. The current bottle I have says it was manufactured in October 2020. It's still as strong as I remember. And it still smells how I remember it, even though it might not be exactly as it was when I wore it more in the 90s and early 2000s. And while a spicy, leather scent isn't something I think of as I want to wear regularly, this is a good trip down memory lane, and it still holds its own. And for the price? It wouldn't hurt to have this around.
0 Comments
9
Pricing
8
Bottle
8
Sillage
8
Longevity
8.5
Scent
SirEmmitt

32 Reviews
SirEmmitt
SirEmmitt
Helpful Review 6  
Dry down!
This one took awhile for me to warm up to it. When I first got it I immediately had buyers remorse. I didn't like it at all. After a few times trying it I realized how great the dry down is. Now it's one of my favorites.
The opening is very busy and hard to describe there is so much coming at you all at once. Floral notes, green notes, spice, sweetness, and leather. It's sensory overload.
But then.....after about 20-30 minutes it hits the mid and starts to really shine. The florals become a little softer, the sweetness becomes a little powdery, and the leather begins to come to the forefront.
The dry down is a smooth manly leather, accompanied by a subtle powder note, and just a hint of floral and musk.
I am glad I stuck with this one. It's such a great fragrance. Oddly enough the scent really does make me think of the color red for some reason.
0 Comments
10
Pricing
7
Bottle
8
Sillage
8
Longevity
7.5
Scent
Guitar2016

215 Reviews
Guitar2016
Guitar2016
2  
Bitter and Herbal
It is a Brilliant Scent, Herbal, Soapy, Spicy and Leathery. It smells so good and very pleasant with reasonable price. This reminds me a bit of Alfred sung Homme EDT, but is not the same. It opens up like soapy fresh spicy, green and floral notes in the background then dry down is a bit Smoky Woody Leathery. The Caraway and Leather notes are dominant in this perfume. This review is based on the new reformulation bottle and Made in Spain ,The Performance is good . I really enjoy it and I'm so happy that I have it in my collection.

Rating : 7.5 / 10
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Statements

8 short views on the fragrance
TsoTso 4 years ago
8
Bottle
8
Sillage
8
Longevity
8.5
Scent
Masculine, strong, classic, even outdated? This is not for everyone. I like to wear it late autumn, the cold and dark nights. And I like it.
0 Comments
StamatiosStamatios 3 years ago
6
Bottle
7
Sillage
8
Longevity
8
Scent
A friend from the past.Complex but well ballanced mascouline blend.Old school but not dated.Classic and classy at a very decent price.
0 Comments
RobbieXRobbieX 4 years ago
8
Bottle
9
Sillage
8
Longevity
9
Scent
A superb spicy and soapy fragrance. Longevity and silage good. One of THE best spicy men's frags.
0 Comments
ElysiumElysium 4 years ago
10
Bottle
7
Sillage
8
Longevity
10
Scent
Not loud, not pushy, not smelly. But quite a delightful, classy leather fragrance with soapy, floral, spicy, and mossy nuances all at once!
0 Comments
WalkerMurphyWalkerMurphy 1 month ago
This was an easy love for me. It’s masculine & dirt cheap. Spice, soap & a touch of leather. It might be yesterday, but hope it surivives.
0 Comments
ChicoRoch1ChicoRoch1 2 years ago
7
Bottle
6
Sillage
7
Longevity
8
Scent
Another underrated Gem from Giorgio. Try to find a vintage bottle
0 Comments
DeerhoundDeerhound 5 days ago
Where's the spice? The leather? Just stays a light soapy green herbal scent to me. Disappointed.
0 Comments
JavijabsJavijabs 3 months ago
6
Bottle
8
Sillage
8
Longevity
8.5
Scent
Caught up with an old friend after 25 years, what an amazing experience. First wear got me two compliments. Get the Made in Spain one.
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